Calm Before the Storm
by Yamiga
Summary: A look on the lives of both the Senju and Uchiha brother's before they were the shinobi that the war made them out to be. Filling in the early gaps of their lives and exploring their relationships with their parents and siblings before the founding of Konoha. Canonish.


**Summary: A short look on the lives of both the Senju and Uchiha brother's before they were the shinobi that the war made them out to be. Filling in the early gaps of their lives and exploring their relationships with their parents and siblings before the founding of Konoha.**

**Genre: Family, Tragedy, Hurt/Comfort, Drama, Romance**

**Warnings: Um...small bits of yaoi (HashiMada), but not a lot. Character death, etc.**

* * *

**Uchiha.**

She waited, as she always did with the sort of anxiety that always made her heart jump. She knew it was bad for her, to worry herself like this over and over again, but she just had to be there in order to assure that all of her boys returned home. She was a mother who worried to much, and during these times, death was inevitable. But she loved her family, her sons...her husband.

She was ill, and she knew very well of the toll that being outside took on her body, but she couldn't just sit inside and wait, she wanted to make sure her family was unharmed.

Seconds passed and her heart began to beat faster as the sun began to set over the land. Feeling a twinge of pain in her heart, she half sighed, half sobbed and turned around to go inside. It wasn't until she heard light noises in the distance, that she turned around and saw three people walking up the trail to her house just along the premature horizon.

Her eyes opened wide and filled with tears when she saw her husband, and two sons making their way down the trail. Without a second thought, she sprinted towards them as fast as she could. Her youngest son did the same, running towards her with a smile on his face.

"Mommy!" He cried as he jumped into her open arms.

"Oh Izuna!" She mustered, picking up her son and holding him.

As usual, she cried. She tried not to, but every time she would cry. However, this time was more reasonable, as her family was absent for two weeks. That had to be her husband's fault, but she was just happy that they were alive.

As she held Izuna in one arm, she stuck her hand towards Madara who declined. That wasn't new for him, he was annoyed by most affection his mother tried to give him. Izuna on the other hand loved it. Any spare chance he'd get to drown in his mother's affection, he would take it. And by the looks of it, he was just in the position to do so.

"Oh Izuna, you're so dirty!" She glared at her husband. "When was the last time my son's bathed?"

Tajima, who had almost no energy didn't want to fall into his wife's trap. Yes, it was true that she missed him and that she loved him, but she never missed a chance to scold him.

"Dad's been busy, mom." Madara spoke. "He's tired, so you shouldn't ask him any questions."

Both parents stared down at their eldest son, somewhat surprised. They didn't neglect to share a pleasant smile as Madara walked inside ahead of him. Izuna began to squirm in his mother's grasp as he saw his older brother going on ahead of him. Reluctantly, she placed him on the ground and let him run and catch up with Madara.

Tajima placed a soft hand on her shoulder to comfort her. "You know he doesn't like being away from his brother."

"I know, I know...I just want to enjoy him while I can." She didn't like the way those words stung her tongue, but they were true. No matter how much she wanted to ignore it, her son was a warrior. She cherished every second she spent with him, because she always knew that it could be his last.

She followed her husband as he walked inside, barely looking back at the beautiful sunset behind her.

* * *

Kotomi Uchiha, prior to her marriage and family, was something that many would deem a disgrace.

She wasn't a shinobi from a clan that had a powerful bloodline or some type of secret Jutsu. In fact, she wasn't from a clan at all, and as far as she could remember...she didn't even have a family. For as long as she could remember, she had been a dancer.

A circus dancer.

A animal tamer.

An acrobat, and occasionally a Ring Leader.

Those were her days when she wasn't aware of the trouble and war raging. She was given the privilege of being carefree, performing and acting along with her crew for those of noble clans and occasionally, stealing. Being a member of a notorious traveling circus had its advantages and disadvantages and when mouths needed to be fed, taking food from the rich tended to be the only option.

Tajima however, had put an end to that, at least in Kotomi's case. It was a rare thing she knew, for someone like her, a poor gypsy girl to actually find love in her audience. But it had happened, and her husband stole her away, giving her a life of riches beyond her wildest dreams.

Of course there were disadvantages tp such a fairy tale, no matter how hard she tried to ignore that fact.

When on the streets and in theatre's dancing for people, she hadn't really taken a moment to think about the war. Afterall, she was never really on a side, in fact she would entertain anyone. Senju, Uchiha, etc. She knew no boundaries, for they were all her paying customers.

But married to Taijima, the Head of the Uchiha clan, she didn't have a choice of whom she wanted to win the war or not. Already forcibly thrown into the worries of war, she had long abandoned her carefree innocence. The war was now her responsibility as well as her husband's. Never again would she be able to freely dance and sing to her well paying audience, for they were already picked out for her.

In the midst of her chaos however, she had bore five sons, five new heirs for the Uchiha clan. She was young at first, having her first child, for she was still just a child herself. However, her husband, who was about fifteen years her senior, took control and responsibility for her. He understood that his young wife had no idea how to take care of a baby, and he had experience with his siblings.

And so, it had unknowingly begun, the switch of gender roles. While she had sworn that she would take responsibility for the other children they had, Tajima didn't find it wrong or disgraceful to take care of his son's himself. Strangely, he enjoyed cooking, changing diapers and cleaning their children while Kotomi mostly cleaned inside and outside the house. She did laundry as well.

Kotomi also found it in her own interest to become a teacher, which benefited her children. While she knew that school was something of a dream during war, she made it her personal mission to educate them all at least eight hours a day.

_At least eight hours._

It was troublesome, getting all five of her absent minded sons to sit down and listen to her, but things finally started to work and before she knew it, she was teaching almost all the children of the Uchiha clan.

Things started to change drastically however, when it came to the death of her first and eldest son, Akihito. He was fifteen when the war finally took him from her, and she went into a state of depression. Nothing, not even her loving family could bring a smile on her face. She remained emotionless and distant until her second son, who was twelve, was taken from her.

She became harsh and snappy towards Tajima after that, and began to blame him for being a careless father. She threatened to take his remaining sons away. He didn't argue with her, he only begged her to see truth and reason behind his actions.

When her third son met his untimely demise, it was almost too much. In some sort of rage, she attempt to kill her husband, causing both Izuna and Madara to hide in their rooms in fear. It took hours of pleading for Tajima to finally calm her down, but it finally worked.

Kotomi finally realized that she could take all the steps in the world to try to prevent her sons from being killed in war, but she would always have to prepare for the inevitable. They were soldiers, shinobi and there was nothing she could do about it. She could only hope they'd return safely and cherish them while she had them with her.

* * *

"My fire style was huge!" Izuna exclaimed, moving his hands in large motions. "I've never seen one so big...I mean, it wasn't as big as big brother's, but still." Izuna pouted as both his parents laughed.

His mother placed some vegetables on his plate and saw him make a disgusted face. "I don't want them." He sneered.

"Well, a warrior isn't big and strong without his greens." Kotomi scolded. "And you will stay up all night until you eat them."

She took her place at the table and began to eat.

"And if you want to have a fire style as big as mine, then you should eat your vegetables!" Madara coaxed from across the table, eating his food quickly. "Besides, if you eat everything tonight, I'll train you some more tomorrow morning!"

Izuna's dark eyes instantly lit up and he began to eat his food viciously. Both Tajima and Kotomi laughed quietly, Madara on the other hand rolled his eyes.

"If you keep on little brother, you'll make yourself sick! Eat slower, you'll still eat it all..."

Kotomi watched in delight until she got a shortness of breath, causing her to quietly cough. She then excused herself from the table and quickly rushed to the bathroom, shutting the door behind her. Grabbing a cloth from the closet behind her, she began to cough heavily until small drips of blood ran down her lips.

It had been this way for months now. Coughing up large or small amounts of blood. Kotomi was sick, and she knew that her ailment was incurable, yet she couldn't bring herself to tell her family. Her husband was much too stressed and her son's...she couldn't bear to see the disappointment in their faces.

Kotomi sighed and looked at her tired face in the mirror. She knew, it would just be a matter of time before she died, so why remain sad and depressed during the time that remained?

Kotomi would wear a kind smile on her face until her days were done. She had to do it, for her son's, for her husband, for her family.

* * *

**So many people think that Madara's mother was from a powerful clan, I just decided to make her a freak show performer instead, but I think I've shaped her up into an okay mother figure. In addition, people automatically assume that coming from the Uchiha clan, she's going to be strong and a very stern mother, but I think I like her as a kind woman, same as Taijima. So, I hope you like it and please review, because the faster you review, the faster I update.**

**And the ****_next_****chapter will focus on the Senju clan.**

**And I don't own Naruto.**


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